Virender Sehwag: “You don’t know when he will bowl a bouncer and when he will hit you on your feet”
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Legendary India opening batsman Virender Sehwag said iconic seamer Shoaib Akhtar was the toughest Pakistan bowler he faced.
While Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was the toughest bowler out of everyone, Sehwag put Akhtar in second place.
Explaining why, he said the Rawalpindi Express was very unpredictable as he didn’t know when Akhtar was about to unleash a lethal bouncer or bowl a toe-crunching yorker that would thud into his feet.
“After Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan, Akhtar was toughest-ever I had faced during my playing days. Because you don’t know when he will bowl a bouncer and when he will hit you on your feet,” Sehwag was quoted as saying by ARY Sports.
Akhtar represented Pakistan in 46 Tests, where he took 178 wickets at an average of 25.69.
He also featured in 163 ODIs and claimed 247 wickets at an average of 24.97.
As for his T20 International career, the 46-year-old picked up 19 wickets in 15 matches at an average of 22.73.
Akhtar still holds the record for the quickest delivery in international cricket, which was clocked at 161.3 kph (100.2 mph) during Pakistan’s match against England in the 2003 World Cup.